Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Storm's comin' Stu
So let's pretend we're in the South, probably the Deep South, say SC or AL. There is a winter storm warning predicting snow from Tues. night through Wed. evening, 6 to 12 inches. Cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria! No bread, milk or water to be found in a 50 mile radius. Schools, businesses, everything closes.
Now let's pretend this is in Denver. No one cares. People ask the newbies if they're ready. Newbies inquire if they ever cancel school or close anything. Nope, only if there is 4 feet of snow in a day or something.
So yep, that's what is on the horizon for tonight. I'm not super worried. Trains don't slip and slide in the snow too much and I have warm clothing. We'll see how many students show up; some were already working on their Thursday "too much snow, live too far away" excuses.
I'm going to consider this our first "real" snowfall. There have been 2 already but both melted within hours or never really stuck much to begin with. The snow falling is really pretty though and it means the slopes are getting better and better.
No skis yet. No snow tires yet. No snow shoes yet. But hopefully soon. If someone would give J a job those things could be purchased MUCH sooner. Please? Anyone?
Now let's pretend this is in Denver. No one cares. People ask the newbies if they're ready. Newbies inquire if they ever cancel school or close anything. Nope, only if there is 4 feet of snow in a day or something.
So yep, that's what is on the horizon for tonight. I'm not super worried. Trains don't slip and slide in the snow too much and I have warm clothing. We'll see how many students show up; some were already working on their Thursday "too much snow, live too far away" excuses.
I'm going to consider this our first "real" snowfall. There have been 2 already but both melted within hours or never really stuck much to begin with. The snow falling is really pretty though and it means the slopes are getting better and better.
No skis yet. No snow tires yet. No snow shoes yet. But hopefully soon. If someone would give J a job those things could be purchased MUCH sooner. Please? Anyone?
Labels: Denver, job search, snow
Monday, October 26, 2009
Gah! Where does my time go?
Oh yeah, it goes towards exploring Denver by bike and car, grading, getting lesson plans together, cooking and cleaning.
So Denver is very cool. Kinda screwball weather though. For example it was in the high 50s, low 60s on Saturday. Then it snowed on Sunday. The high today is in the 50s again and yes it's snowing on Wednesday. Crazy.
I went to Veloswap, which is a massive bike expo and swap meet, on Saturday. Tickets were $6 beforehand or $8 at the door. What really caught me off guard was the 7 freakin' dollars for parking!?!?! This was nowhere NEAR downtown or any sporting event. Paid more for parking than my ticket, blerg. So next year I think I'll park a tad further away and then walk or bike to the place, which was the National Western Complex. Subaru is the title sponsor and they have some other vendors and what-not but it's mainly a place for bike shops and people to get together and sell some bike stuff. There were also a few tents, packs and clothes, which seemed a little weird. I picked up a more street oriented tire, new seat (saddle), some pedals, a headlight and some nice ergo grips for a grand total of $39, which brought my daily total to $52 with ticket and parking. It's a great place to find some cheap used items, cheap new items and some discounted bikes. I saw complete bikes ranging from $50 to $3000.
My absolute favorite of the day was Panda Bicycles out of Fort Collins, CO. We're growing bikes is their slogan and they are. Bamboo bikes. $1250. Done. Gorgeous bamboo with a 2-part epoxy slipped into metal joints. Really pretty and if I'm spending that much on a bike, it might as well be out of bamboo. I've heard they ride really well to boot.
How cool is that!
So yes I've been bad about maintaing this blog. Still haven't updated it or done a "Best of" series like I've been promising for ages. But I'm still here! I'm still blogging! And I'm out of grad school! And I'm a reluctant teacher who actually cares and wants to get better!
So we'll see what direction the blog takes. Obviously it'll still be in my voice, still about hiking, biking, the outdoors, the environment, cars, Focus, Tercel, J, Leon and Foxy, with the new added twist of being in Denver.
Upcoming posts:
Denver restaurants
Denver neighborhoods
F1 watching in Denver (I'd like to start a group if possible, so please email me if you're interested, my email address should be over there on the left)
Still not having cable but watching TV and sports
Bicycle commuting in Denver
So Denver is very cool. Kinda screwball weather though. For example it was in the high 50s, low 60s on Saturday. Then it snowed on Sunday. The high today is in the 50s again and yes it's snowing on Wednesday. Crazy.
I went to Veloswap, which is a massive bike expo and swap meet, on Saturday. Tickets were $6 beforehand or $8 at the door. What really caught me off guard was the 7 freakin' dollars for parking!?!?! This was nowhere NEAR downtown or any sporting event. Paid more for parking than my ticket, blerg. So next year I think I'll park a tad further away and then walk or bike to the place, which was the National Western Complex. Subaru is the title sponsor and they have some other vendors and what-not but it's mainly a place for bike shops and people to get together and sell some bike stuff. There were also a few tents, packs and clothes, which seemed a little weird. I picked up a more street oriented tire, new seat (saddle), some pedals, a headlight and some nice ergo grips for a grand total of $39, which brought my daily total to $52 with ticket and parking. It's a great place to find some cheap used items, cheap new items and some discounted bikes. I saw complete bikes ranging from $50 to $3000.
My absolute favorite of the day was Panda Bicycles out of Fort Collins, CO. We're growing bikes is their slogan and they are. Bamboo bikes. $1250. Done. Gorgeous bamboo with a 2-part epoxy slipped into metal joints. Really pretty and if I'm spending that much on a bike, it might as well be out of bamboo. I've heard they ride really well to boot.
How cool is that!
So yes I've been bad about maintaing this blog. Still haven't updated it or done a "Best of" series like I've been promising for ages. But I'm still here! I'm still blogging! And I'm out of grad school! And I'm a reluctant teacher who actually cares and wants to get better!
So we'll see what direction the blog takes. Obviously it'll still be in my voice, still about hiking, biking, the outdoors, the environment, cars, Focus, Tercel, J, Leon and Foxy, with the new added twist of being in Denver.
Upcoming posts:
Denver restaurants
Denver neighborhoods
F1 watching in Denver (I'd like to start a group if possible, so please email me if you're interested, my email address should be over there on the left)
Still not having cable but watching TV and sports
Bicycle commuting in Denver
Labels: bicycle, Denver, environment, Subaru
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